


Ember

by EthanTheAnnus



Series: Ember Series [1]
Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Fight Scenes, Gen, Hurt No Comfort, No Fluff, No Romance, The Author Regrets Everything, The Author Regrets Nothing, This just hurts, it's all just pain, no youtube, superpower au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-25
Updated: 2020-10-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:15:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,173
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27191615
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EthanTheAnnus/pseuds/EthanTheAnnus
Summary: Tommy found himself staring out over the city through cracked goggles, his breath warm as it found the resistance of the plain black mask covering his mouth and nose and fanned back across his face. Night had fallen, painting the sky with flecks of silver and rays of moonshine, and not long ago Tommy would have taken the time to stare, to let himself dream of reaching up to catch a handful of stars, but his full attention was on the barely-visible figure across the square from him.-OR-Superpower AU but it's pure pain and nothing is happy ever
Relationships: No Romantic Relationship(s), Toby Smith | Tubbo & TommyInnit
Series: Ember Series [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1984966
Comments: 12
Kudos: 87





	Ember

Tommy found himself staring out over the city through cracked goggles, his breath warm as it found the resistance of the plain black mask covering his mouth and nose and fanned back across his face. Night had fallen, painting the sky with flecks of silver and rays of moonshine, and not long ago Tommy would have taken the time to stare, to let himself dream of reaching up to catch a handful of stars, but his full attention was on the barely-visible figure across the square from him.

There’d been months upon months of buildup to this moment, to him being here, staring down the very person who was responsible for the charred high-rise buildings, for the entire block that had been completely razed, for the destruction and death of neighbourhood upon neighbourhood. From where he was standing, Tommy could see the tiny flashes, could almost hear the buzz, as lightning crackled at the fingertips of the figure crouched atop a roof, no doubt returning his gaze with as much intensity.

Fire coursed through his veins, hot and burning and full of anger he couldn’t put into words. This monster of a human had grown into being right under Tommy’s nose, had slowly built up plans, had killed so many people, and he hadn’t been able to even try to stop him. Every crime scene had been empty seconds after an explosion of pure electric energy, every single resident of a neighbourhood lying dead under the rubble, and Tommy could do nothing.

A light breeze ruffled his cloak out behind him, and Tommy swallowed harshly, finally letting the fire flow from his veins, from his bloodstream, from his very core, out to dance across his fingertips before it formed into a blazing ball around his fists. Tommy took in one breath, then two, and stepped off the roof.

*******

Tommy had been scared his whole entire life; scared of himself, of the power he held, of hurting others. It was so rare, to be born with any kind of powers, and something as destructive as fire made him an immediate outcast. 

As he grew older, Tommy learned to control his powers; where, as a kid, he’d struggled, found them unpredictable and wild and destructive, now he could mask them, could keep the fire bottled up inside until he could release it safely, away from anything flammable, away from people. Still, nothing could stop the fear he felt walking into a bookstore, or how much he shied away from crowds for fear of his power bubbling over and spilling out, for fear of hurting someone, for fear of being painted as the villain once again.

Then there was the day of his outburst. A moment of pure rage, so strong and violent and powerful that Tommy couldn’t stop the flames from bursting out of his skin, could barely manage to redirect them so they merely singed a building wall instead of burning a hole through the flesh and bone of the gang of bullies standing right in front of him.

He remembers the terror in their eyes, remembers the way they’d bolted away, but most of all, he remembers the addicting rush of power. The way he wanted more, wanted to let go of all control, to have the flames lick up the walls of the alley and burst out over the rooftops and set the whole world ablaze. It had scared him, that he could ever feel that way.

It had made him finally decide to visit one of the centres set up for helping those gifted with powers; they were few and far between, and the closest one to him was a five-hour drive. His parents had been tearful when they had to say goodbye at the gate, and Tommy had stared at the small house with apprehension before stepping inside.

Three months later, he emerged from there with a far better grip over his powers and his mind set on becoming a hero. His mentor during those three months had been an ex-hero; Tommy didn’t know who he’d been, but the way he’d talked had betrayed that he wasn’t the average citizen.

His name had been Wilbur, and he’d taken Tommy under his wing the second he’d arrived. His powers seemed to be smoke-related, as far as Tommy could see, and he’d been patient and kind and had helped Tommy to finally feel in control of his powers. It had hurt upon leaving, but Wilbur had smiled at him and sent him off with a wave.

He didn’t know where he’d be without those three months, and the thought scared him, so much it hurt to breathe. All he knew was he wasn’t about to become the city’s local pyromaniac, and that was good enough for him.

******

The town square’s stone ground cracked a little beneath him when he landed, but Tommy didn’t even glance down. His steps were slow and deliberate as he drew nearer to the person who’d landed across the square, until they stopped, about a metre apart. Tommy drew in a breath and wished he’d checked the small voice distorter in his mask for a third time.

“Voltaic, right?” Tommy almost winced at his own words, but there was no turning back. “That’s what you’ve been calling yourself?”

“Ember.” There was no emotion in the voice of the figure across from him, static and robotic and so flawlessly androgynous that Tommy’s own voice distorter paled in comparison. “I knew we’d meet.”

Tommy feels the flames at his hands flare bigger, brighter, hotter. “You’ve hurt a lot of people.”

Voltaic just stared at him, impassive, and it was then that Tommy noticed they were wearing some kind of mask, everything so dark in colour they nearly blended into the night. It was smart, really, betraying no emotion during a confrontation, but it was also infuriating; Tommy had been hoping to get under their skin a little, to work out what to say so they would mess up and he could gain the upper hand.

“ _ Innocent  _ people,” Tommy said after a moment, anger creeping into his tone.

“They’re not innocent,” Voltaic responded instantly, and Tommy was surprised to hear a tiny hint of anger in their tone.  _ Not so emotionless, then,  _ he thought to himself.

Tommy tilted his head slightly, as a kind of unspoken question. “Oh yeah?”

Voltaic’s head turned away with a small, almost imperceptible growl. “You wouldn’t care. Now stop getting in my way.”

Tommy uncurled his fists, letting the fire rolling across them spike up. “No.”

Voltaic let out an animalistic snarl, lightning sparking at their fingertips. “Guess I’ll have to make you.”

******

The first time Tommy had ever met someone who wasn’t scared of him was when he was ten. He’d learned to control his powers to some extent, but the kids in his year level still knew of his powers, and stayed away from him, whispered behind their hands, and glanced at him across the classroom. He was a freak and something to fear, and sometimes he wondered if that’s all he’d ever be.

Then, one day, a small, brown-haired, blue-eyed boy by the name of Tubbo had approached him. He’d smiled and enthusiastically shown him a drawing he’d done of a field of flowers with a beehive. Tommy had barely been able to believe that this boy actually wanted to be his friend.

It was only moments before something had startled Tommy, causing fire to flare across his skin, but instead of jumping away in fear, Tubbo had simply stayed, had continued to smile at him. He was the first person that hadn’t immediately feared Tommy for his powers, and it was no wonder the two had stuck together for all these years.

Tommy had more friends than just Tubbo now, but they were very obviously more tight-knit than Tommy was with anyone else. They were rarely seen apart, and had inside jokes upon inside jokes, to the point that to anyone but them it became nauseating. 

When Tommy had hesitantly begun trying to be a hero, to follow in the footsteps of his former mentor, the thought of keeping innocent people, people like Tubbo, safe and alive was what kept him trying. Even after he was beaten down time and time again, even after he had to feign being sick for days to hide his injuries, Tommy found strength in knowing he was doing what he could to keep people safe.

The first time he ever managed to stop a criminal, Tommy felt an adrenaline rush so strong, and he smiled so wide, thinking of Tubbo, and how he’d finally managed to keep people like him safe.

******

The breath was knocked from Tommy’s chest as Voltaic flew at him, throwing a punch filled with lightning that crackled through his bones. It was all he could do to throw up a wall of fire in defence as a follow-up attack came, lightning clashing with fire and exploding, throwing both him and Voltaic backwards.

Pushing himself back to his feet as quickly as he could, Tommy launched himself across the square, flinging out an arm to send fire arcing towards the other. A shield of electricity was thrown up barely in time, and the explosion that followed was far smaller than the previous one had been. Tommy skidded to a halt a fair distance from Voltaic, taking a moment to think.

If every time their attacks met an explosion followed in its wake, he could end up being knocked out, and then Voltaic would hurt more people, and Tommy might never find them again. He needed to be smarter, but it was hard to think with more electrical energy arcing towards him.

He rolled aside just in time, letting the lightning scorch the wall behind him, and then he took off running, right at Voltaic. He threw a fireless punch at the other’s chest, then ducked low to sweep their legs out from under them. Letting fire flow back across his skin, he held his hand just above their throat and tried to catch his breath.

Then, he finally looked down, eyes widening as he saw the cracked, broken mask, the hint of brown hair showing through, the panicked blue gaze. It was almost enough to make him stumble back; almost, but not quite.

“... Tubbo?”

*******

Tommy had struggled to open up to Tubbo about the extent of the bullying and isolation he’d endured as a kid. It was years into their friendship before he finally spoke about it; about the way bullies would corner him, would douse him in water, would laugh and point and spread rumours.

The memories were beyond painful, and Tommy had hated looking back on them. He’d burst into tears at some point, and Tubbo had been quick to comfort him. Tommy had felt so grateful for his friend back then, had felt less alone than ever.

But now he was fighting the person he’d given all of his trust to, and he didn’t know how to handle it.

*******

Tommy wrenched off his goggles and pulled down his mask, and he saw Tubbo’s eyes widen, saw him finally make the connection. It was a wonder, really, that he hadn’t realised sooner.

“I was only trying to protect you. To defend you,” came Tubbo’s broken voice after a moment.

“From  _ what _ ?” Tommy couldn’t help the pain that crept into his own tone.

“From everything. From… From  _ them _ . They hurt you.”

Tommy’s eyes widened, the fire on his skin sizzling out. “Tubbo…”

“They were awful to you,” Tubbo continued, seeming frenzied. “They deserved it.”

“This isn’t what I wanted,” Tommy said softly. “They were stupid kids, not criminals.”

Tubbo let out a laugh from below him, but it sounded broken and wrong. “There’s only a couple more blocks. I’ll take them out tonight. Then they can’t hurt anyone again.”

Tommy stared down at his friend, at the person he’d known for so long, and realised he wouldn’t stop. He trembled, suddenly realising what he’d have to do. Old fears rose up in him, but he pushed them down.

This was for the city. This was for everyone Tubbo once was.

He gently moved away the broken halves of the masks. Tubbo’s gaze was that of an insane man as Tommy placed his hand on Tubbo’s cheek.

“I’m sorry,” he said, and Tubbo barely registered the words before Tommy let flames dance over his skin again. He turned his head and closed his eyes, trying to block out the screams of pain, knowing the smell of burning flesh would never leave him.

*******

Tommy placed a single flower atop the gravestone, ignoring the tears running freely down his cheeks. The flames in his veins were a curse to him now, and he wished he knew how to tune them out, how to stop them burning. He smiled brokenly as he placed a small figurine next to the flower; it was a bee, perfectly sculpted and painted.

“A flower and a bee, Tubbo. Like always.”

**Author's Note:**

> i cried writing the final scene of this


End file.
